Asia

Hong Kong's securities regulator reported a spike in the number of instances where the city's financial firms are failing to comply with its anti-money laundering guidelines. It has long been known that money laundering can have significant negative impact on economic growth. Enforcement of regulations to eradicate money laundering contributes to advancing SDG 16.4 by 2030 to significantly reduce illicit financial and arms flows, strengthen the recovery and return of stolen assets and combat all forms of organized crime.
Previous studies already demonstrated that biochar addition reduces nitrogen (N) leaching in soil, but little information is available about its effects on N leaching and bacterial community structure under the application of organic N. This study investigated the effects of corn-straw biochar under the application of urea (250 kg N ha-1) in layered soil columns. The PCR-amplified partial 16S rRNA genes in soil were sequenced before and after biochar treatment in order to assess the change of bacterial diversity and community structure utilizing the Illumina technology.
Public rental housing (PRH) projects are the mainstream of China's new affordable housing policies, and their integrated sustainability has a far-reaching effect on medium-low income families' well-being and social stability. However, there are few quantitative researches on the integrated sustainability of PRH projects. Our study tries to fill this gap through proposing an assessment model of the integrated sustainability for PRH projects. First, this paper defines what the sustainability of a PRH project is.
Background In the past two decades, the under-5 mortality rate in China has fallen substantially, but progress with regards to the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 4 at the subnational level has not been quantified. We aimed to estimate under-5 mortality rates in mainland China for the years 1970 to 2012. Methods We estimated the under-5 mortality rate for 31 provinces in mainland China between 1970 and 2013 with data from censuses, surveys, surveillance sites, and disease surveillance points.
Background China has experienced a remarkable epidemiological and demographic transition during the past three decades. Far less is known about this transition at the subnational level. Timely and accurate assessment of the provincial burden of disease is needed for evidence-based priority setting at the local level in China. Methods Following the methods of the Global Burden of Disease Study 2013 (GBD 2013), we have systematically analysed all available demographic and epidemiological data sources for China at the provincial level.

We examine human displacement among indigenous tribal conservation refugees—the Sahariya—recently displaced from a wildlife sanctuary in central India. We focus on human displacement's mental health toll as well as the displacement-related changes that help explain such emotional suffering. To do so, we compare individuals relocated from the core of the sanctuary to those allowed to remain in their villages inside the sanctuary's buffer zone. The drawing of the sanctuary boundary—and thus also the assignment of villagers to relocation versus remaining in the buffer zone—was capricious.

Elsevier, International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 44, September 01, 2015
This paper examines the effect of age of marriage on women's schooling outcomes for 36 countries from Sub-Saharan Africa and South West Asia. We employ an instrumental variable approach to account for the endogeneity of early marriage driven by socio-economic and cultural factors. Our results show that delaying early marriage by one year is associated with an increase of half a year of education in Sub-Saharan Africa and nearly one third of a year of education in South West Asia as well as a lower likelihood of dropping out from secondary school of 5.5% in South West Asia.
As the post-MDG era approaches in 2016, reducing child undernutrition is gaining high priority on the international development agenda, both as a maker and marker of development. Revisiting Smith and Haddad (2000), we use data from 1970 to 2012 for 116 countries, finding that safe water access, sanitation, women's education, gender equality, and the quantity and quality of food available in countries have been key drivers of past reductions in stunting. Income growth and governance played essential facilitating roles.

Urban green space, such as parks, forests, green roofs, streams, and community gardens, provides critical ecosystem services. Green space also promotes physical activity, psychological well-being, and the general public health of urban residents. This paper reviews the Anglo-American literature on urban green space, especially parks, and compares efforts to green US and Chinese cities. Most studies reveal that the distribution of such space often disproportionately benefits predominantly White and more affluent communities.

Elsevier,

The Lancet Global Health, Volume 1, December 2013

This Article supports SDG 3 by showing plausible outcomes associated with exposure to e-waste (end-of-life electrical and electronic waste), including change in thyroid function, changes in cellular expression and function, adverse neonatal outcomes, changes in temperament and behaviour, and decreased lung function.

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